Teen program deepens faith, inspires service

When I arrived at St. Helen's Church in Niskayuna on July 18, I never imagined how vivid and wonderful SALT could be. I say "vivid" because SALT not only opens your eyes; it opens your heart as well.

SALT stands for Service Action Learning Team, a program of the Albany Diocese's Office of Evangelization and Catechesis. It brings teens together for service and prayer. Earlier this month, 14 of us got together.

A typical day at SALT includes breakfast and prayer, then service for three hours at various sites; after lunch, a few more hours of service, then journaling and discussion; and, after dinner and either a movie or a speaker, splitting into two groups to make lunch for our fellow SALT members or to create the next morning's prayer.

Prayer and service

It was always a real treat when we gathered for evening prayer because some members of the diocesan Youth Ministry Team came to facilitate. One day, we shaped Play-Doh into hands, hearts, mouths and faces in order to represent ourselves in response to a reading.

For the week of SALT, July 18-23, we were immersed in service. Whether that meant getting our hands dirty in the gardens or digging into mounds of donated clothes, we were busy.

However, there were also countless opportunities for us to have fun while working. There were dozens of inside jokes swirling around SALT, and you learn that being cheerful makes you a device through which Jesus is channeled.

"This is so completely different from all the other retreats I've ever been to," said Joe Gaylord from St. John the Baptist parish in Valatie.

Walk the walk

We all came to realize that the old adage is really true: "You can't just talk the talk; you've gotta walk the walk." At SALT, we took action!

At the Community Gardens, for example, we took action by weeding, watering and harvesting. The vegetables will go back to the food pantry at Schenectady Inner City Mission. At the Bethesda House, we helped set out soup and sandwiches in the kitchen, and sorted clothes from mountainous piles (see page 4).

A lot was accomplished, and we learned the truth about service: Hard work is worth it because all the good you are doing will come back to you!

"This has been a great opportunity for us Catholic youth to put our beliefs into action as well as reading and talking about it," explained Theresa Lemmerman of St. Joseph's Church in Schenectady.

Learning

We learned at SALT by journaling about our experiences and then discussing them as a group. Questions such as "How was I surprised by Jesus today?" and "How was I changed?" were on the list of musings.

We were all friends at SALT. We bonded in song and laughter as we shared our experiences together. The teamwork was characterized by smiles, and by the way we reached out to one another and to those around us.

For example, at the garage sale at Sacred Heart/St. Columba's Church in Schenectady, one group worked to get every detail completed. Joe and Dave cleaned out the garage; Sabrina and Sara set out the toys for sale; Pat brought out the tables; and Kay and Linda finished setting up.

At the Salvation Army, another group worked in an assembly line to feed the hungry crowd. Matt was in charge of coffee; Kelly refilled trays; Morgan was the "cake lady;" Sara gave out bread; Theresa and I scooped out spaghetti and sauce; and Richard put it on people's trays.

Memories

SALT will be with us forever. The week was filled with surprises, friendships, love, faith and laughter. The week taught us so much about justice and service -- and really changed us all for the better.

Thank you, God, and everyone else involved in this experience," said Morgan Sullivan and Sabrina Nastasi from St. Clement's parish in Saratoga Springs.

As Richard Belotti of Corpus Christi parish in Round Lake said, "SALT is better than anything!"

(Stacy Fontana is a member of St. Margaret of Cortona parish in Rotterdam Junction.)

(7/29/04)